Google Nexus S available today – run, don’t walk to nearest Best Buy

It’s the day hardcore Android fans have been waiting for: Best Buy is now selling the Google Nexus S, successor to the Nexus One, the first device with Android 2.3 Gingerbread. We went hands on with this little puppy just a few days ago and came away pretty impressed, so if you’re looking to upgrade your existing Android handset, or you’re looking to jump on the Google phone bandwagon, it’s not a bad choice.

The Nexus S is very Galaxy-esque in that it has the same 1GHz Hummingbird processor, 4-inch Super AMOLED display and stylings as the Galaxy S series by Samsung. It’s the first Android 2.3 Gingerbread handset available, which gives you a faster, more polished version of the Google platform along with support for new technologies like NFC.

You can pick up the Nexus S – a device lusted after by ninjas – from Best Buy for $199 with a new two-year contract, $249 for adding a line to an existing account and $529 off contract. The smartphone is unlocked, which is great, but virtually pointless since it only supports T-Mobile’s 3G bands–and why would anyone want such a capable smartphone these days without 3G capabilities? It’s also a bit of a bummer that the Nexus S doesn’t support T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network – something that would have made this device ten times more desirable.

Of course, you could do worse and the Nexus S isn’t a bad piece of hardware. Be sure to call your local Best Buy and double-check stock before you head out as we’ve heard reports of some stores being out of stock – probably not sold out, but didn’t receive any units – early this morning.

In the meantime, feel free to check out our unboxing down below along with a quick tour of the software below. Also, if you manage to nab the Samsung handset today, feel free to share images and your stories in the comments down below!